Median weekly asking rents have fallen in almost 20 per cent of all Adelaide suburbs over the past quarter, new data shows, giving hope to many struggling tenants in the midst of a cost of living crisis.

According to PropTrack data, weekly rents have dropped in 42 of the 249 suburbs it has house or unit data for over the past quarter.

Prices remain unchanged in a further 65 suburbs.

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Dollars-wise, the biggest price drop can be seen in Findon, where the median unit price is $65 lower than in June.

This does not mean tenants are experiencing rental relief or had their rents dropped, but that the overall median of houses or units in a suburb is lower than last quarter.

Real Estate Institute of South Australia legislation and industry adviser Paul Edwards said any relief for tenants was welcome.

“This is extremely good news for hopeful tenants, obviously we didn’t want prices to keep increasing forever, and property managers have reported properties are taking longer to rent and there are less tenants coming to opens, so I’m not surprised to hear it’s easing, and we need it to ease a lot more,” he said.

Paul Edwards, Real Estate Institute of South Australia. Supplied.

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“Tenants are breaking lease left, right and centre, and a lot of tenants are moving back home and starting to group together now and sharing a home just because they can’t afford these rising prices.”

In terms of dollar difference over the past quarter, Glenside houses have experienced the biggest jump in median weekly rent, up $78 from $720 to $798.

It eclipsed West Beach, Evanston Gardens, Sturt and Marden houses, and Murray Bridge units, which all increased by $40 or more for the quarter.

Glenside houses also have the biggest dollar difference over a 12 month period, up $148 on this time last year, with houses in Highbury up by $110 and West Beach, Modbury and Kidman Park houses all up by $100.

Taarnby Real Estate’s Donna Hughes, who is currently listing a three-bedroom apartment at 108/1 Banksia Street, Glenside, said the rentals in the suburb, as in many, were not increasing for reasons some may think.

“We’re seeing a lot of infill development, where a lot of older stock is being replaced with newer, higher quality stock and that naturally commands a higher price,” she said.

“As a comparison I appraised a property in Joslin – similar in style to the Glenside one, and that was five minutes away and $100 less per week, so a lot of people want to be in that complex, and that’s because of the lifestyle it offers.”

She said is wasn’t landlords increasing rent or being greedy.

Donna Hughes at Glenside’s Grace apartments. Glenside has had the biggest increase in weekly rent over the past quarter and 12 months. Picture: RoyVPhotography

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“Homes are only worth what someone’s prepared to pay for it and I am blown away that a one-bedroom I have can fetch $520 per week, whereas five years ago that would have been a two or three-bedder in the same area,” she said.

In terms of percentage growth, the biggest difference can be seen in Murray Bridge, where unit prices have increased by 14.29 per cent – the biggest quarterly increase of any SA housing.

Units here are now renting for $320 a week, up $40 on the $280 they were commanding last quarter, and up 23.08 per cent or $60 a week on the $260 they were sitting at this time last year.

It eclipsed Glenside houses, where the median asking rent has increased by 10.76 per cent over the past quarter.

Evanston Gardens, West Beach and Sturt houses all experienced an increase in median weekly rent of more than 6 per cent.

Click here to find out how rents have performed in your suburb